Surgical fixture



Nov. 20, 1945. w. L. MERMIS SURGICAL FIXTURE Filed July 31; 1944 I INVENTOR- WILLIAM L. MERMIS ATTORNEY.

Patented Nov. 20, 1945 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE SURGICAL FIXTURE William L; Mermis, Youngstown, Ohio Application July 31, 1944, Serial No. 547,392

3 Claims.

This invention relates in general to surgical fixtures and, more particularly, a fixture or holding device adapted to position and hold the head, neck, and shoulders of a patient during a nasal or throat operation, such as a tonsillectomy, sinus surgery, or bronchoscopy.

The present invention has for its primary objects the provision of a device of the type stated which is simple and rugged in construction and can be quickly and accurately adjusted to the various desired positions in which the patient must be placed for the surgical procedures to be employed.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a device of the type stated which will securely hold, the patient in the desired position and will not accidentally shift during the course of the operation.

It is an additional object of the present invention to provide a device of the type stated which is compact and entirely portable so that it may be used with equal facility in the hospital operating room as an accessory to standard operating tables, in the physicians office or examining room, or carried into the private sick room by rural practitioners, for example.

And with the above and other objects in view, my invention resides "in the novel features of form, construction, arrangement, and combination of parts presently described and pointed out in the claims. i

In the accompanying drawing (one sheet)-- Figure 1 is a top plan view of a surgical fixture constructed in accordance with and embodying the present invention;

Figure 2 is a side elevational view of the surgical fixture; and

Figure 3 is a transverse sectional view taken along line 3--3 of Figure 2.

Referring now in more detail and by reference characters to the drawing which illustrates a preferred embodiment of the present invention, I designates a frame member, formed preferably of sheet metal, having sumcient thicknes to provide the desired strength and structurally stiffened by a solid marginal bead 2, welded or otherwise rigidly secured upon the upper face thereof. The frame I is formed so as to provide an end portion a adapted to lie beneath the back of a patient and having a transverse width, more or less suitable for such purpose. Midway between its ends, the frame I curves outwardly and is widened to provide a shoulder portion 1), then narrowing in the formation of a neck portion 0 and finally extending outwardly in the provision of a head portion d. By reference to Figures 1 and 2 the particular confirmation of the frame member will be apparent. It will be noted that the frame I is bent upwardly in the region of the shoulder portion b so that the end portion a' and the head portion d will lie more or less in the same plane and the neck portion 0 will extend sharply downwardly from the shoulder portion 1) to the head portion d. The frame I i furthermore'provided in the'region of the shoulder portion I) and end portion a with a relatively large aperture 3 and swingably mounted for relatively free movement within this aperture 3, by means of hinges 4, is a back rest panel 5, likewise formed of sheet metal and marginally'stifie'ned by a peripheral solid bead 6. The frame I and the back rest panel 5 thickly padded and upholstered upon their upper faces and lateral margins with a sanitary, sterile and water-proof covering, as best seen in Figure 3.

' Rigidly mounted upon the under-face of the frame I, in the region of the shoulder portion 1), is a U-shaped cros frame 1, having vertical legs 8 and a flat horizontal cross member or bight 9.

It should be noted in this connection that the legs when the surgical fixture is in use and furthermore the under-face of the cross member or bight 9 is disposed in the same plane as the portions of the under-surface of the frame I which are in contact with the supporting table or bed, as best seen in Figure 2. The legs 8 are further provided with transversely aligned vertical slots II) having, in their rearward vertical margins, a plurality of matching detent-notches I I.

Fixed upon and projecting downwardly from the under-face of the back-rest panel 5 are a pair of laterally spaced bifurcated lugs I2 and swingably mounted, in the bifurcations thereof by means of hinged pins I3 are hanger rods I4 provided at their ends with a relatively strong horizontal latching bar I5 projecting at its opposite ends through the slots III and sized for releasable engagement within any one of the detent-notches I I. Secured at their ends to the latching bar I5 adjacent the hanger rods I4 are spiral springs I6 attached at their other end to depending anchor lugs I'I secured upon and projecting outwardly from the under face of the frame I approximately at the point where the neck portion 0 joins the head portion d, for normally urging the bar in the direction of the head portion d and into; engagement with the detent-notches II, all as best seen in Figure 2. Swingably secured at its ends by means of rings I8 is an elastic band der the small of the patients back with the shoulder portion 1; more or less under the patientfs shoulders ahd ,tiie'head resting in a downwardly and backwardly bent position in the head portion cl. It will be apparent that in this position the neck and head will be bent sharply backwardl so that the crown of the patients head will actually be resting in the headportion d and the mouth of the patient will be sop-need that the oral cavity is conveniently laccessiblefor slitgical operations. Furthermore, if desired the chin strap 20 can be looped over the patientshead' and into engagement with the lower jaw or hin or as. tdhold the mouth in fully opened position tones long as surgeon or oper r may desire; 1' Finally; because patients will vary in size and. alsobecause these kinds of operations require more or less backward tilting of the patients neck and head it is possible to adjust the back, rest paneli upwardlycor vdownwardly by manuallyshifting the latching bar t5 toward the end portion :1' against the tensionof the springs l6 and swinging the back portion, upwardly to the desired height, whereupon the latching bar l5 may be permitted to drop into the nearest detentnotchesi H and will hold the back rest panel 5 in such adjusted position. In actual practice the d'etent-notches can be formed, as shown in Figure 2 so that the back rest panel 5 may be merely pushed upwardly and the latching bar is will-automatically shift in-and out of successive detent-notches H as it, moves upwardly, veryiin'the manner of a ratchet; It will, of course, be understood thatthe latching bar If: must he manually'released in order to return the back rest panel 5 to initial position. It should also be noted that, when the surgical fixture isv in actual use, the weight of the patient will be distributed along three transverse lines or areas arid the shoulder load will be borne by the cross frame 1, as best seen in -Figure2.

a It will be apparent that the surgical fixture of the present invention isrrelatively simple in construction and operation and is not only convenient for use asan accessory to operating tables and surgical bedsin hospitals and ofiice's but is also readily portable and may 'be'transported by the physician orsurge'on to the sick room of patients for the performance of minor surgical operationsand examinations of the oral cavity or throat, in fact, surgical fixtures constructedv in accordance withthe present invention are extremely useful for therural practitioners who frequently must perform a, tonsillectomy or broncho'scopy in an area where hospitalization is not available.

Itfshould be understood that-changes and modifications inthe "form, construction; arrangement, and combination of the several parts'of the sur-- gical fixture may be made and substitutedi'for those herein shown and described without departing from the nature'and principle 501 my invention. I i

Havingthus. described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent isr 1. A surgical fixture for use in supporting a human patient during the performance of surgical procedures and examinations, said fixture comprising a padded frame having a head-supporting section and an end section adapted to fit beneath the back and shoulder blades of the patient and being connected to the head-supporting section by an upwardly arched neck section, said end section being provided with a relatively enlarged aperture, a back-supporting member swingably mounted in the aperturefor supporting the shoulders of the patient at different selected angular positions with respect to the head-supporting member, and manually releasable means for holdiiig the. back-supporting member in any one of its several positions of adjustment.

2. A surgical fixture for use in supporting a human patient during the performance of surgical procedures and examinations, said fixture comprising a padded frame having a head-suporting section and an endsection adapted to fit beneath the hack and shoulder blades of the patient and being connected to the head-supporting section by an upwardly arched neck Section, said end section being provided with a relatively enlarged aperture, a back-supporting member swingably mounted in the aperture for supporting the shoulders of the patient at different seleeted angular positions with respect to the headsupporting member, a pair of legs rigidly mounted on and extending downwardly from the frame in the region of the portion adapted to underlie the shoulders of the patient and being provided with vertical slots having a series of vertically paced detent notches) a transversely extendin latching bar swingably mounted on and depending from the back-supporting member for engagement at its ends in the detent notches, and spring means for normally urging the latching bar into engagement with the detent notches.

3. A surgical fixture for use in supporting a human patient during the performance of surgical procedures and examinations, said fixture comprising a padded frame having a head-supporting section and an end section adapted to: fit beneath the back and shoulder blades of the patient and being connected to the head-supporting section by an upwardly arched neck section, said'end section being provided with a relatively enlarged aperture, a back-supporting member swingably mounted in the aperture for supporting the shoulders of the patient at difierent selected angular positions with respect to the head-supporting member, a pair of ices rigidly mounted on and extending downwardly from the frame in the region of, the portion adapted to underlie the shoulders of the patient, said legs being connected at their lower ends by a transversely extending cross member the under faceof'which lies in the same planeas the portions oi theirame underface upon which the fixture rest when in opera tive position; said legs further being provided with Vertical slots having a series of vertically spaced. detentnotches, a transversely extendin latching bar sw-ingably mounted on and depending from the back-supporting member for enagement at itsends in the detent notches, and sp i means. for normally ur ing the latchin bar into. en agement with the detent notches.

-L. MERMIS. 

